Category Archives: Malaysia

Suzanne Law Hawes in Malaysia

Country of Service: Malaysia

Place of Service: Petaling Jaya

Service Type: Education

Dates in Service: 1964-1965

Keywords: Education, Youth

Accession Date: September 9, 2021

Access: Researchers can use every item in the box, but no names of people from the diary can be published or shared for 15 years. In addition, the names and locations of the Assunta students who wrote the essays in the collection cannot be made public. Also, the reunion book cannot be used to contact the people listed in it, and no personally identifying information of the attendees can be made public for 25 years.

Collection Size: 0.75 linear feet

Document Types

  • Correspondence
  • Journal
  • Maps

Finding Aid:

Box 1

  1. Assunta Student Essays, 1965
  2. Correspondence
  3. Tape Transcripts
  4. Maps and Pamphlets
  5. Malaya VII 50th Reunion Book
  6. Original Diary (p. 1-130) 1 of 3
  7. Original Diary (p. 131-190) 2 of 3
  8. Original Diary (p. 291-450) 3 of 3

Box 2

  1. Typed Diary (p. 1-130) 1 of 3
  2. Typed Diary (p. 131-250) 2 of 3
  3. Typed Diary (p. 251-329) 3 of 3

Processed by Rebecca Kaliff

Jonathan Knopp in Malaysia

Country of Service: Malaysia
Dates in Service: 1960s
Keywords: Peace Corps Training

Accession Date: December 13, 2021
Access: No deed of gift
Collection Size: 0.5 linear feet

Document Types

  • Malaysia VII language course materials

Finding Aid

  1. Malaysia VII language training books (39) 

Dan Peed in Malaysia

Country of Service: Malaysia
Dates in Service: 1968-1969
Keywords: Agriculture, Community Development, Education, Environment, Health, Literacy

Accession Date: May 7, 2021
Access: no restrictions
Collection Size: .01 linear feet (located in small collections)

Document Types

  • Film/Video
  • Memoir

Finding Aid

  1. DVD: “Malaysia-19 Video” 
  2. Memoir/Short Stories: “Snake Adventures” and “Training in Paradise” 

Ruth Bednarz in Malaysia

Country of Service: Malaysia
Place of Service: Sandakan
Service Type: High School Teacher; Founding Member of Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of New Jersey
Dates in Service: 1973-1976
Keywords: Community Development, Education, Health, Library Literacy, Youth

Accession Date: April 16, 2021
Access: no restrictions
Collection Size: .01 linear feet (located in small collections)

Document Types

  • Publications

Finding Aid

  1. Returned Peace Corps Publication: “RPCVoice” (1985); Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of New Jersey Directory: 1986-1987 

Raymond Fisher in Malaysia

Country of Service: Malaysia
Service Type: Community Development
Dates in Service: 1964-1966
Keywords: Community Development

Accession Date: October 8, 2018
Access: No Restrictions
Collection Size: .5 linear feet

Document Types

  • Correspondence
  • Reports
  • Publications
  • Memoir

Finding Aid

  1. Correspondence (to Raymond), 1963-1967, 1973, 2001, undated 
  2. Correspondence, 1964 
  3. Correspondence, 1965 
  4. Correspondence, 1966 
  5. Malaysian as Second Language, n.d. 
  6. News Clippings, 1964, 1965, 1967, 1973 
  7. Orientation Materials, 1964 
  8. Project Planning, 1964-1966 
  9. Recent Trends in the Socio-economic Life of Villages on the Malaysian Peninsula 
  10. Reflections, 1965 
  11. Report on Prior Field Experience, 1967 
  12. Request Letter, 1976 
  13. Review: Projects at Gedangsa, 1964-1966 
  14. Travel, 1965 

Peace Corps Celebrates Halloween and Local Festivals

While Americans celebrate Halloween with crazy costumes, haunted houses, and trick-or-treating, people all over the world have been observing a variety of festivals. Peace Corps Volunteers, as temporary residents of various nations around the world, experience these celebrations.

Volunteers have one of three experiences:

1) They don’t celebrate at all.
Halloween is sometimes an easy holiday to overlook so either the volunteer forgets, they are too busy to celebrate, or there are just no celebrations. Bobbe Seibert, who served in Honduras, notes that she just carried on with her day.

Bobbe Seibert, Honduras, 2000. “Tuesday Oct 31 Halloween – not that anyone noticed here. I think tomorrow is day of the dead here too but am not sure. Up at 6:30 – swept & washed up 7:30 at the corredor.

2) They celebrate local festivals.
Claire Pettengill notes in a letter home that she was given a holiday to celebrate the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha, the “sheep-killing” holiday, which honors the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his son at God’s command. She also had some time off for a Moroccan national holiday.

Claire Pettengill, Morocco, ’78-’80. “We get a long vacation for the sheep-killing holiday — 7 days beginning Oct. 30. I’m going to Berkane to see my adopted family for one day, then probably will head south to Marrakech with Amy. Haven’t had much time to travel.”

Claire Pettengill, Morocco, ’78-’80. “We have Monday off because of a national holiday (La Marche Verte–when Spain, in cooperation with Algeria, returned the Spanish Sahara to Moroccan control, in 1970-something, there was a huge peaceful march to that area, which is one of the biggest patriotic holidays each year) and Amy has gone to Taza, a Moroccan town.”

Both Winifred Boge in India and Al & Anne Briggs in Malaysia celebrated the Hindu Festival of Deepavali (Diwali). Also called the Festival of Lights it “spiritually signifies the victory of light over darkness, good over evil, knowledge over ignorance, and hope over despair,” where people light and place candles all over their home, as Winifred mentions in her letter.

Winifred Boge, India, ’65’67. “Speaking of Christmas – Halloween passed with nary our indication of such – but week before we had Deepavali with candles outside.”

Al & Anne Briggs, Malaysia, ’64’66. “Today we had a holiday for the Hindu festival of Deepavali, but of much more importance to us, of course, are the elections at home. You will be voting while we are asleep.”

3) They celebrate American traditions.
Even though volunteers are far away from home, they are still able to share American customs with their communities.
Margaret Fiedler had a party with her students in Guatemala where she served from 1985-87. She introduced them to bobbing for apples.

That’s Chavez in the tree – in the other end of the rope is another boy – they jerk the rope so the kids can’t break the pinata right away. Notice the girl blindfolded with the big stick – it really gets exciting – the kids can’t wait to pounce on the candy as it spills out.

Lynda Smith-Nehr and fellow volunteers dressed up in costumes while they were in the Philippines.

Lynda Smith-Nehr, Philippines, 1962-1964. “Halloween, Lorrie & me.”

Lynda Smith-Nehr, Philippines, 1962-1964. “Halloween, Mrs. Pamplona.”

Halloween may not be an international holiday, but there are many different ways that people all over the world celebrate this time of year.

 

 

Creating their Stamp Around the World: Postal Stamps of the PCCA

Stamps often feature flora, fauna, or an interesting image related to the country or region it’s created for. Also, Peace Corps Volunteers (PCVs) had the lucky chance to live and serve in countries all over the world. As a happy consequence, the two come together when PCVs send their mail home via exciting and new stamps from the countries they served. The Peace Corps Community Archive (PCCA) houses collections of correspondence between PCVs and their family and friends. These correspondences oftentimes include the envelopes each letter was sent in, which means the stamps are often intact. Much can be learned from these stamps, including, illustrations of native inhabitants, local flora and fauna, important technological advances, and much more. Not only do these stamps help carry connections back home for PCVs, but the stamps also share an insight into the exciting communities they served.

Charlotte Daigle-Berney served in Uganda from 1966-1968. On a postcard dated February 1967, she included these three stamps, which feature the local fauna of Uganda. The set of these stamps were released on October 9th, 1965. The stamps feature, from left to right, the Black Bee-Eater, the Narina Trogon, and the Ruwenzori Turaco. All three are native species to Uganda and represent the environmental climate of the country. These stamps offer insight into the vibrant fauna of the country in order to excite both visitors and locals to the nature around them.

 

In addition, Albert and Anne Briggs served in Malaysia from 1964-1966. Anne wrote a letter to her parents on January 5, 1967 and included these stamps. The stamp was released on November 15, 1965 and features the local flora of Malaysia, the Rhynchostylis retusa, also called the Foxtail Orchid. Below, it reads the name “Sarawak,” a Malaysian state on the island of Borneo. By “reading” this stamp, one can connect the beautiful flora with a specific location in Malaysia and thereby gather important information about the stamp’s place of origin.

 

Lastly, Bobbe Seibert served in Honduras in the year 2000. Some of her communication with back home was through email, however, Seibert did send a multitude of letters. The first stamp features a nurse tending to a patient and the words, “Correos de Honduras” or “Post of Honduras.” The stamp celebrates Red Cross nurses and the care they have for their patients. The design for the stamp has gone through numerous designs but this stamp was released in 1999.

Another stamp features Ramón Valle, a Honduran olympian from the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia. Valle went to the Olympics in 1996 to represent Honduras in men’s swimming. “Translating” these stamps allows us insight into the perception of Honduras. First, the country values its medical care to those in need. Next, a successful Olympian is a symbol of Honduras and represents their country abroad and at home. Since Valle did not represent Honduras in 2000, but rather, represented the country in 1996, the stamp was possibly produced to encourage the country’s interest and support in the Olympic games. This is supported by the fact the stamp was produced on September 13, 2000 and the Olympic opening ceremony was on September 15, 2000.

All of these stamps share insight into the countries and regions they represent. While some PCVs didn’t notice which stamp they sent their mail home with, other stamp collectors reveal at the significance each stamp offers.

 

For more information, please visit the Peace Corps Community Archive website. To use the collections or make a donation, please contact the AU Archives at archives [at] american.edu.

Wish You Were Here: Postcards from Peace Corps Travels

 

For Peace Corps Volunteers, postcards were an easy way to communicate with their loved ones and show them the sights they witnessed on their travels. Postcards shed a variety of insights into PCVs and the types of experiences they had during their service. For many PCVs, postcards allowed them to take the image on the front and detail their environments, such as weather and natural beauty.  Postcards are a great way to see what PCVs thought important enough to share with family and friends.

 

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Claire Pettengill sent this postcard at the beginning of her service in Morocco before her training, where she stayed from 1978-1980. In her card, she mentions the camel on the front picture and notes she hasn’t seen any yet. She also mentions her love of the city she’s staying in but also comments on how intimidated she is by her surroundings.

 

Anne Briggs served from 1964-1966 in Malaysia with her husband, Albert and sent this postcard from Hawaii where she trained. Briggs chooses to focus on describing her surroundings in her card home. She notes the beauty of the island and the mild weather. She also expresses her excitement to sight see.

 

pcca_day_0007a

 

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David Day served in Kenya and India from 1965-1967. Day wrote in Swahili on one card and translated to English on another. It is interesting that Day wanted to share both languages with his family back home. He also writes about how expensive postage for postcards was in Nairobi and how he likely will not send another postcard.

pcca_kann_0005a

Steve and Janet Kann sent this postcard from Saint Lucia, while they were serving in the East Caribbean from 1980-1982. Their short description paints the picture of a lively marketplace with shouting and pushing. The image on the postcard paired with the description brings an image to life, where anyone who reads the card can get a taste of what the Kanns experienced.

 

For more information, please visit the Peace Corps Community Archive website. To use the collections or make a donation, please contact the AU Archives at archives [at] american.edu.

Albert Briggs and Anne Briggs in Malaysia

Albert Briggs
Anne Briggs

Country of Service: Malaysia
Place of Service: Penang
Service Type: Education
Dates in Service: 1964-1966
Keywords: Library, Mathematics, Penang

Accession Date: January 7, 2016
Access: No restrictions
Collection Size: 0.25 linear feet

Document Types

  • Photographs
  • Letters
  • Programs
  • Publications

Finding Aid

  1. Holiday Greetings from Al and Anne (Christmas 1964, 1965, 1966) 
    1. Christmas letters 
  2. Letters from Al to parents (Training, May 1964 and ‘Thank You’ for Anne’s parents) 
  3. Letters from Anne to Parents, Feb 23, 1964-May 6, 1964 (Training at Northern Illinois University, Dekalb, IL and Hilo, Hawaii) 
  4. Letters from Anne to Parents, ’64-’66 (Service; may 9, 1964-Nov 30, 1966 and Travel; Dec 9, 1966-Jan 12, 1967) 
  5. Letters from Anne to Jenny and Hans Arps (January 18, 1965-December 14, 1966) 
  6. Newsletter, “Keridek Glugor,” 1966 (Interview with Anne Briggs) 
  7. Official Letters to Al Briggs 
  8. Programme, Nov 6&7, 1965 
  9. Teaching Material, Malavia, Oct 1965 
  10. Workshops, Nov 1966